


His Saving Grace

by Idril_Telperien1



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Gen, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-16
Updated: 2014-02-23
Packaged: 2018-01-04 20:41:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1085472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Idril_Telperien1/pseuds/Idril_Telperien1
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Spoilers for 9x09. <br/>Sam is gone. Cas is wounded. Kevin's in heaven with a girl he's never met. Then they have to deal with Metatron's original plan to reclaim heaven: an army of nephilim, created from angels who have no recollection of their children. Unfortunately for Metatron, Cas' child is just as rebellious as her Father and, with her new family, plans to reclaim heaven.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone,   
>  This is something I started a couple of months back but then I got bogged down with moving to Uni so it took a back seat. It was originally set straight after the season 8 finale but then I watched the mid-season finale and wanted to make a fix it fic (because really what was that!). It follows basically the same plot but I’ve just moved a couple of things around. I hope you like it. Idril x   
> P.S I'm new to AO3 so sorry if the categories ect are not right!

**Prologue**

**“I think Heaven will be like a first kiss.” ― Sarah Addison Allen**

**Kevin Tran POV**

I woke with a start. A cold sweat dripped down my spine as I gasped for breath, desperately trying to suck air into my protesting lungs. I ran a shaking hand through sweat soaked hair and tried to remember what I’d dreamt that had left me feeling as though I was on the verge of passing out. After blinking a couple of times I managed to clear the black spots from my vision and found myself staring at a collection of dog eared paperbacks that I kept on a shelf in my room in the bunker. So I hadn’t fallen asleep at the library table face down on the tablet. That was a nice change. I pulled my legs up to my chest, kicking out in frustration at the covers until I managed to release my feet, and tried to put the bile lacing my throat down to spending too long reading the angel tablet. Still I couldn’t get the uneasy feeling out of the pit in my stomach. Something was wrong. Something was really wrong.

“Happy birthday Kevin.” My first thought was that my birthday wasn’t for months. My second, and what really should have been my first, thought was that there was a strange girl had wandered into the bunker. I stared in credulity at the girl standing nonchalantly before me. Her bright emerald eyes glimmered in the dusky light of the bunker as she bounced anxiously from one foot to the other, however, a bright smile alighted her face as she played with a loose lock of raven black hair. She giggled at something, I wasn’t sure what, perhaps she was crazy? Before I has a chance to call out to Sam or Dean for a little assistance she has crossed the room in two long strides until she was looming over the bed. 

“Hey, hey does Dean know you’re here? Sam? They don’t usually let people in off the street. It’s kind of a secret… jump in any time?” I finished, staring wide eyed at the girl as she perched on the bed and leaned forward, her hand running through my hair. I leapt back on the bed, who the hell was this girl? And why the hell wasn’t she speaking? Suddenly she turned, rooting around in the bedside cabinet. I stared at her wide eyed for a second, too stunned to even ask her to stop. Obviously not being able to find what she was looking for she reached up and grasped the pulley for the bedside lamp. The light spluttered for a second before bursting to life. The light burned into my irises. Just like…

Just like Sam.

Just like…

I spun myself round, away from the intrusive blast of light but I couldn’t get away from the blinding images. Sam… Sam turning into something… something that wasn’t, that couldn’t have been Sam. Something that had the power to create a blistering light that... killed.

Oh God. I was dead. The Winchester’s had finally managed to kill me. So, the bunker was heaven? Jesus Christ I was stuck here in death as well. The girl next to me still hadn’t reacted, she was still rifling through the drawer. I’d spent enough time around the Winchesters to have heard about their foray into heaven. It was meant to be a highlight of all your best memories. So surely I should have been home with my Mom in our old house and not stuck in the bunker with a girl I hadn’t met. How was she even here?

“Happy birthday Baby,” The dark haired beauty finally turned with a small wrapped package that she held out. I took it, playing my part while my head spun a mile a minute. What the hell was going on? I unwrapped it to find a black cord necklace with a bronze symbol hanging from it. There was something familiar about the curved script, maybe it was enochian, but I couldn’t understand it. I turned back to the girl, wanting to ask what the hell it was, maybe she was another Winchester- only they would give me another homework assignment on my birthday- but I knew she couldn’t answer. However, she was sat with her head bowed, her dark lashes kissing her cheeks while a pink tinge spread across her face. “I know you know what it means,” she whispered uncertainly.

“I wish I did, I wish I knew who you were but I don’t,” I muttered, wishing I could interact with her. She laughed suddenly, looking up with bright sparkling eyes before wrapping her arms around me. I staggered back but managed to stay upright as she burrowed against my chest. My stomach flipped as I felt her body against mine. The wisps of her hair tickling my jaw as she nuzzled against me. I wrapped my arms around her, feeling her fragile frame under my hands. I hadn’t held anyone like this in a long time. Hell, the odd slap on the back or a ruffle of my hair was the most physical affection I’d had in a long time. Since… since my Mom.

“I love you, Kevin Tran,” The quiet, whispered confession against my neck shocked me out of my revere. I stared down at the top of her curly head in shock, wishing I could say it back but I couldn’t because I hadn’t got a clue who she was. I wish I knew what my side of the conversation would be, although I could take a wild guess that _I love you too_ would probably come next. If I knew her then this would probably be one of my best memories. A beautiful memory with a girl I loved. Maybe heaven was already predetermined, and if you died before your time you just lived through it. It would explain why I didn’t recognise the girl who was declaring her love for me. It would also fit with the craptastic luck I seemed to have in life. I mean the one upside to being dead was that you got to spend eternity in heaven with the ones you loved, remembering your best moments. I should be able to know what was going to happen next, what my side of the conversation would be. I should be able to remember the feelings that this moment conjured the first time I heard it. I should feel butterflies at hearing her declaration.

I shuddered suddenly as I felt her tongue against my neck, the contact making me shudder as one arm slid under my over shirt and grasped my T-shirt, pulling me down on top of her. I followed, positioning my hand beside her shoulder so I could support myself, even in heaven I doubted squashing your partner would go down well. She worked her way up my neck, placing delicate kisses along my jaw until she finally reached my mouth. I captured her mouth in mine, feeling her soft lips pressed against mine, her tongue flicking out against my lips, begging for access and before I knew what I was doing I had granted it. There was something both insanely wrong and yet insanely right about lying here with this girl. I focused on the physicality of it, feeling her body underneath mine as she moved in sync with me, it was a nice distraction. If I was stuck in heaven then I might as well have a little fun.

“Kevin,” She moaned against my lips and my eyes flicked open to stare into her deep green eyes. They lit up as she smiled, a proper grin that stretched across her face and made her eyes sparkle.  I recognised the look in her eyes. I recognised her smile. I knew my fumbling through heaven and this unknown memory was finally in sync as we stared at each other. She wore the same expression my Mom gave me when I was little and she’d ruffle my hair as she read me a bedtime story. It was unashamed, unadulterated love. I hadn’t seen that look in a long time. It was as though, through that one perfect look, a switch had flicked inside me. Emotion hit me like a freight train; the love, the trust, the hope that I had in her washed over me. The burning light that had destroyed my life was twisted in her eyes until it turned into a soft pulsating glow. I knew her. I might not have met her but familiarity burned inside me. I knew her. I loved her.

“Anna.” Her name was wrenched out of my like a dying man’s prayer. _Anna. My Anna._ No sooner had the realisation hit me then the room began to burn a blistering white. I wanted to shut my eyes but I couldn’t tear my gaze from her content face.

Her green orbs were the last things I saw before the light blinded me and I was clawed out of my heaven and thrown into oblivion.     


	2. Rebellion

**1\. Rebellion**

**“Every act of rebellion expresses a nostalgia for innocence and an appeal to the essence of being.” ― Albert Camus**

**Annabeth**

I watched the sun disappear behind the skyline in the distance. I’d been standing there for some time, perhaps several hours; certainly the sun had moved from a bright burning ball high in the atmosphere to a watery red residue over the sky behind the far away city. I was vaguely aware of the door opening behind me but I didn’t turn round; there was only one person who would walk in here without knocking first. I knew the reason he was here, invading my personal space, and quite frankly I didn't want to have that conversation right now. Only because, deep down, I knew when it came down to it I didn't have a leg to stand on. I'd broken the rules, rebelled against the carefully constructed life that had been created for us behind these stone walls. No, I had no excuse for that so instead it was easier to stare out at the dying red embers of the sunset glowing behind the brick buildings of the sleepy town. I listened to the quiet foot falls of Caleb's feet as he headed towards my bed. He had been trained since he could walk in the art of stealth and hunting: it was only because I’d had the exact same training that I heard anything at all. I waited with baited breath for his tirade but it didn't come. He was playing the waiting game. Well two could play and there were hours left before the darkness fell with such ferocity that I'd be blind to the outside world. Hell, I'd even stare into the darkness if it meant Caleb was the first to speak.

 “You missed training today.” I bit down on the inside of my cheek to stem the smirk that was trying to form at winning the silent game.

"Since I still have all my faculties I really don't need an itinerary of my own day." I snapped back with undue force but turned to face Caleb who had made himself comfortable spread across my bed; his long legs swung backwards and forwards as he waited patiently for me to get out of whatever funk I was in and open up to him about what the hell was up. We’d known each other for as long as I could remember but that wasn’t unusual or particularly special since everyone here had known everyone for as long as they could remember. No one new ever came into the house, hadn’t for years. The only people who entered or exited were Metatron and his cohorts. I sometimes wondered why no one else found this strange. Why was I the only one who longed for more than the compound and training for a war and revenge that I had no interest in? Caleb, perhaps, understood me a bit better than the rest of our ragtag family but I knew he still found me an enigma at times. His gray eyes met mine and raised one pale eyebrow to silently ask his true question "why?" but I didn’t, couldn’t, answer, just picked at some grime under my nails while I tried to figure out quite what to say apart from the snarky response I’d give anyone else. Caleb would never accept it.

“Annie.” He whined, trying to repress a smirk as he waited for me to explode over the nickname. The one thing always guaranteed a reaction from his stoical best friend. I knew his game but I played along anyway. There was something soothing in the routine.

“Don’t you _dare_ call me that. My name is ANNA _BETH._ Anna is acceptable and even bitch works on occasion but _never_ Annie.” I playfully shook my head at his dirty tactics; he knew I had always had a strange aversion to Annie, even when we were tiny children toddling along and everyone thought it was a cute little nick name. Perhaps that was why: cute had never quite fit my personality. Not that Caleb could talk; he had the brooding looks of someone a human would cross the streets to avoid. If they ever got the chance to see him. His dark grey eyes sparkled in humour as I sat on the end of the bed and whacked him across the leg none too gently.

"It was many and many a year ago in a kingdom by the sea that a maiden there whom you might know by the name of Annabelle Le-eek!" He yelped as I lunged at him, arms outstretched to playfully gank him for the joke. He fought back, his arms trying to get under my defences, I knew he was going for the spaces between my ribs. My one weakness. We ended up giggling hysterically with a flail of limbs and gnashing teeth. Once we stopped to get our breath back I realised Caleb was on top of me, his face inches from mine and his warm breath brushed against my lips. For a split second I thought he might lean down those final few centimetres and place his lips on mine. Break the rules. For several more seconds neither of us moved. We stared at one another, like one of our childish staring contests we used to have. He opened his mouth, his head ducking down towards mine. My eyes fluttered shut and I waited to feel his lips on mine. My first kiss. However, instead of his chapped lips on mine, my entire body became lighter. Startled, I opened my eyes to find Caleb sitting up on the bed, still gasping slightly from their energetic tumble as he pushed his wild dirty blonde hair out of his eyes. I sat up, pushing my hair back into a loose bunch and trying to look as nonchalant as possible. 

 “So why didn’t you come?”

“Didn’t want to. It just seemed… pointless.” I shrugged with false nonchalance, lounging back on the pillows next to him on the bed, if I was honest with myself I wasn’t quite sure why I had felt like rebelling against the accepted regime today but I had. Yet another reason why I was so different to everyone else here. Everyone else, at least on the outside, seemed perfectly content with the strange life they had built. The regime, the routine was their lives and they never questioned it. But I had always longed for more. I could spend hours gazing longingly out the bedroom window at the street below; watching the comings and goings of the oblivious humans. They didn't even notice the Cathedral sized building housing a couple of dozen Nephilim. But they got to come and go. To see the wide world. To dive into the blue sparkling sea that was just visible from the top spire in their home. The children of the angels never left the Abbey; they trained and studied and prepared for the war Metatron had promised them. I wanted more; I felt a burning desire inside me to go out into the wide world and find my family. Metatron had sworn that our angelic parents had made the ultimate sacrifice and given us up willingly to create the perfect army. It was for the greater good. A boarding school without end. But maybe if my Mother or Father saw me they'd change their mind and take me back. It was a foolish, childish dream that I was sure we had all shared at some point in our lives: I just still had it.

"They'll be angry, Anna. They'll..."

“Can we drop it? I’ll go to the next one.” I whispered, fear seeping into my voice at the prospect of our superiors’ views on my disappearance. I was never really one to think ahead, I hadn’t spent hours contemplating what they would do to me like Caleb would. I hadn’t wanted to go so I hadn’t. 

"So are you going to eat dinner or are you continuing with your little rebellion and going on a hunger strike too?" Caleb smirked coyly and braced himself for the sharp thwack he knew I would provide. Annoying he always knew the best way to make me smile. Needless to say I grabbed a pillow and smashed it into the back of his head.

"I need strength for my _little rebellion_ so dinner is surely a necessity." I smirked before standing up and finding my black boots scattered under the writing desk. I'd recently waxed them and the black leather shone in the evening dusk. At least I wouldn't get told off for scruffy clothing; there wasn't so much a uniform at the Abbey but everyone wore similar black utilitarian clothing. And they always had to be clean and orderly. Slipping my boots on over my black jeans I grabbed my leather jacket and headed out; taking for granted the fact that Caleb would be on my heels like a loyal puppy dog.

The Abbey was what most people would expect from an abandoned Nunnery: large, cold and unfriendly. Despite the fact I'd lived there since I was born I never thought of it as home. It was more like a prison. The dining room, however, was full of laughter and bubbly conversation as we entered. There were perhaps thirty angelic children sat around two long wooden tables in the centre of the room. Off to the side, beside the door into the kitchen was a line of counters where meals were being lined up as they came through the hatch in the wall. The Abbey had a rotary system for everything: who cooked, cleaned the rooms, cleaned the weapons, wrote up reports. Everyone did their fair share to make the community self-sufficient. Now we were older the handful of angels who oversaw us were starting to take a back seat; the five angels had taught us everything from how to walk to how to hunt demons but now we were starting to take over. They were readying us for the long awaited war that had been fabled for years but never really expanded upon.

I grasped for Caleb's hand before heading for the food. It smelt good, it never smelt that nice when Caleb and I were cooking. Thankfully for everyone we were currently charged with cleaning the weapons which we excelled at. Any old human could cook something delicious but really how many could make a gun that could kill angels? I sniffed the steaming plate; trying to work out whether it was lamb or pork mince on the spaghetti, earning an annoyed glare from Clarice, a short blonde haired girl who was currently floating plates through the hatch and over to the table. _Show off_.  Clarice and I had never really hit it off, especially after an unfortunate incident when testing out a new weapon I'd created, I might have managed to accidently singe off Clarice's eyebrow. Perfect shot.

"Just put the damn food in your mouth and sit the hell down." She snarled making me smirk before following Clarice's advice and heading for our usual table. I usually sat on the table closest to the door with Caleb and was glad to see my favourite seat at the very end of the table was free. Caleb had already taken the seat beside mine and was making fast work of his dinner. I'd never met anyone else who could demolish an entire plate of food, minus the peas which he beautifully christened _devil’s spawn,_ in under two minutes in my life. Sometimes I wondered if he even chewed or just swallowed it all whole. Needless to say by the time I sat down and ate my first forkful he had finished and was gulping down a glass of milk in one go.

"I'm not sure whether to be impressed of utterly disgusted." I wrinkled my nose in his direction, only to have Caleb childishly stick his food covered tongue out. "Well that decided it. You’re disgusting." He chortled but his laughter died on his lips as his eyes focused on something above my head. My blood congealed in my veins. It was time then.  I took a deep breath, knowing exactly what was about to happen, but I didn't turn round knowing that acting normal would be the best way to get through this.

"Annabeth I'm so glad to see you looking well. I thought something awful must have happened for you to miss training today." The icy voice sent shivers up my spine but I plastered my best I'm-a-good-little-girl smile on my face before turning round to see my mentor bearing down upon me. Alana was a tall, severe woman with her thick auburn hair pulled into a tight bun atop her head. Her beady eyes and sharp accusing eyes always reminded me somewhat of an eagle especially as she grasped my shoulder with thin claw like fingernails.

“Sorry, I uh…” What could I say _I wasn’t feeling well?_ I had grace, there wasn’t much that could be wrong with me. _I had a family crisis?_ I had none. _I couldn’t be bothered?_ Yeah… no. “I’m sorry.”

“Well, I think we need to have a little chat don’t we? Come to my office after dinner.” She squeezed tightly, the claws digging deeper into my shoulder and I had to take a deep breath before nodding, my usual sarcastic retort caught in my throat by the sharp pain emanating from my shoulder. Alana gave a tight lipped smile, a malicious glint evident in her dark eyes, before releasing her painful grip and striding away. I rubbed my shoulder, trying to get the blood flowing again but I still couldn’t help but grimace at the lingering pain and _knowing_ that the bitch had used her angelic power to make it that bit more painful. I suddenly noted how quiet the hall was and how many pairs of judgemental eyes were turned aghast in my direction. Even Caleb, who was even less fond of such attention than me, was staring intently at his discarded peas as if they were about to jump up and do a magic trick. My impending doom had put a dent in my appetite but I knew as soon as I had finished I’d have to make the trip upstairs to Alana and quite frankly that was something to put off for as long as possible. I was lost in my own disturbing thoughts but a gentle caress down my arm made me turn to find Caleb’s nervous gray eyes boring into me. He pushed his plate towards across the table to me and I saw he’d made a lopsided smiley face out of them. Unable to contain the laughter I let it bubble out into an odd hysterical gulping sound. In return for cheering me up I pushed my plate towards him, his gesture giving me the strength to go face the wrath of my superior, hell if I was early maybe I’d even get brownie points?

The angelic officers’ offices were located on the top floor, there was a running joke that it was because they were closer to heaven, and I took my good sweet time walking up the many spiral staircases. Alana’s door was the first on the left, a large oak door with a heavy iron handle that still took two hands to push open. I knocked, a loud firm knock despite the fear coursing through my veins, but I could hear nothing through the wood. Curiosity got the better of me and I pushed against the door. It opened with a low groan that made me wince as it echoed off down the corridor but hearing no movement or sounds of investigation I decided to peek around the door into the gloomy room; I’d been in there one too many times for my liking, so I could picture the desk in the far corner of the room and the book cases lined with leather bound tomes, more for display than anything else I guessed, but in all honesty all I could see was darkness. I should have waited outside like any other good angel would have, but the sneaky devil voice inside me taunted me to go inside. The door was open just enough for me to squeeze round and I quietly closed it behind me before leaning back against the wood to let out the breath I hadn’t realised I’d been holding. My eyes were slowly adjusting to the gloom and I could make out with ever glowing clarity the gray blurs of furniture at the other end of the room. As I scanned the room I realised I had no plan; what was I looking for? Why was I risking everything to go snoop in a room. And then, then it hit me. Maybe there was some record of my parents hidden here?

Unable to stop myself I practically sprinted across the room and began rifling through the wooden draws. But there was nothing bar an old broken watch: no paper, no stationary, nothing that could lead me home. I was just closing the lowest drawer when I heard voices outside the door. If they found me in here there wouldn’t be a scale to measure how much trouble I’d be in so I did the only thing I could; I flung myself on the floor and slipped under the desk. The wooden frame would hide me as they walked in and as long as Alana didn’t tuck the chair in too much she wouldn’t hit my cowering frame. The only problem would be if Alana decided to stay and wait for me, but I couldn’t think further than saving my delinquent butt for the next few seconds.

“We should have seen this coming!” Aleric, another of the supervisors, angrily snarled as two sets of feet made their way into the room.

“How could we have seen _this_ coming? Castiel was a perfect angel before…”

“Before Winchester? You really think Winchester corrupted him in _hell._ He was corrupted a long time before that.” Aleric let out a derivative snort at a joke only he seemed to find funny. 

“Well we always knew Winchester would be difficult, no one knew what he was capable of. No one knew that when Castiel laid his hand on him in hell that blackened, twisted soul would corrupt him!” Despite all the times I’d seen Alana angry, and there had been dozens, I’d never heard the sheer unadulterated hatred that coated her voice now. The tone caused me to shiver even though I didn’t have a clue what the hell they were talking about; who, or what, were Castiel and Winchester, and why were they the cause of so much hatred?

“We should have dealt with her then. The moment he turned. We already knew she had one unpredictable bloodline, two was too much.”

“Metatron was always certain about their match. Said they were perfect and he knows what he’s…”

“And what about now? Metatron’s disappeared off the face of the earth and we’re left waiting for our rightful places back home. That girl is going to ruin it all! She’s different! I’ve told you all along. If she dared to miss training then what else will she do?” Oh God, _they’re talking about me._ I subconsciously curled myself into a tighter ball and tried to quieten my heart which was currently thundering obscenely loudly in my ears. _Please leave._

“I’ll keep her on a tight leash. She’s the perfect soldier and we need one of them.”

“Please, even locked up here away from her Father’s corruption she’s turning rebellious. It’s in her blood. If she escaped and found Castiel this would all be over.” _Castiel._ I finally knew my Father’s name. Having a tangible name seemed to change him from a blurred background figure to a smiling man, whose grace resonated with my own, who would beam down on me and keep me safe. Suddenly, stupidly, my current predicament didn’t faze me. I would do what they so feared and find him. Find a home. If he was as rebellious as they said then he would surely help me liberate the rest of the angelic children. Together we could teach them about free will. I’d practically moved myself in with him in my mind; the warm thoughts loosening my tightly curled body when feet were suddenly upon me. Hastily I pulled back my limbs as Alana flopped graciously into the chair but kept it, thankfully, turned to the side as I continued to focus on Aleric. I didn’t even dare breath. Every minute twitch my body made, every beat of my heart, suddenly seemed impossibly loud in the confined space.

“So what do we do?”

“She’s coming here, right?” Aleric asked and I did my best to remember my training and not flinch as his booted feet came into view.

“Yes, any minute now.”

“Then we kill her.”          


	3. Flight

**2\. Flight**

**“Anger prepares us to fight and fear prepares us to flee.” ― Chip Heath**

**Annabeth**

It was a testimony to the training of those plotting my destruction that I didn't let out a gasp and give myself away there and then. While I'd never felt like I belonged here as much as the others, I'd never felt as though I was in danger. And yet here I was listening to them planning my death. One of my earliest memories was Alana reading to me (the bible, nothing too childlike or comforting) and Aleric had taught me how to shoot. While they'd never pass as guardians of the year I'd never imagined they'd murder me because I missed training for God's sake! I felt wetness creeping down my cheek and realised I was crying. Silent tears blurring my vision and coating my cheeks in sticky moisture. With the back of my shaking hand I wiped my eyes and focused on the voices above me. I didn't have time to think about the loss of my surrogate family, nevertheless a painful lump settled itself in my mind, trying to force itself to the forefront of my consciousness but I pushed it down. I had to focus solely on escaping otherwise I was done for. My best hope was that Alana would get sick of waiting for me and the two would go hunting for me in the halls of the abbey, then I could sneak out and sprint out to... Oh God where the hell would I go?

NO.... focus. First I had to get out from this desk. The problem would be if Alana or Aleric went off searching and the other waited behind. Then I really would be trapped. Sadly for the minute they seemed to have no intentions of leaving. At least they had stopped discussing how to murder me and had just decided to stand in an uncomfortable silence overhead. I prayed to God... Or even better Castiel that I’d get out of this. A parent would watch over me, hopefully better than this lot seemed to be at loving me. There was a small niggling voice that felt the need to point out that he'd been happy to abandon me here for the last few years. But from the way they'd spoken he wasn't their favourite person and maybe he'd been coerced into giving me away. Alana had certainly been unnerved at the prospect of them becoming a team, maybe that was a good omen. 

"Where is she?! Even for her death the girl manages to be late." Despite the situation I couldn't help but smile. Pissing Alana off had suddenly gone from a minor amusement to one of the pure pleasures in my life. Using the time I had trapped under the desk I mentally scanned the building trying to think of the best exit. There was a front door to the Abbey but that was too obvious, anyone walking by would see my break for freedom. There was a wood behind the Abbey, if I could get to that then I could use the cover to give me a head start on the angels. There was a trash flow shoot in the kitchen. That could work. Now I just had to escape from these two.

"She's probably running around with that boy. If we dispose of her then we have a shot of keeping Caleb as a good little soldier." There was a murmur of ascent from Alana and I could have cried in relief that Caleb was safe, but for how long? How long until he stepped out of line and they killed him? He was perhaps the second biggest troublemaker after me. And if I disappeared he wouldn’t accept it lightly, he’d question them. I had to take him with me. We could run off into the big wide world together. _If_ I got out of here. Why couldn't they just leave?

“I’ll go find her.” _No no no no no- Alana had to go too!_  I could almost hear the smile in Aleric’s voice at the prospect of dragging me to my death. In hindsight I probably should have seen his sadistic side when he used to make us run ten mile laps in the rain during the dead of winter.

“No, wait. She’ll know something’s up, I’ll go.” Alana’s legs disappeared and her sharp heels clicked against the wooden floor with a resounding thud. I could hear Aleric’s harsh breathing as he came back towards the desk and thumped down into the seat. Quickly, I gathered my limbs to my chest and pushed myself back against the wooden panelling as Aleric’s legs threatened to encroach into my personal space. He grunted and leaned forwards, probably snooping around Alana’s desk while I willed my heart to beat quietly and my breathing to even out. I needed a new plan; I had to deal with Aleric now. Aleric was an angel. He had more power than me. In an out and out battle he would win. Except… except I’d been training to kill angels since birth. I could do this. I hadn’t brought a weapon, I hadn’t really thought I’d needed to, but I could make one out of something in the room. I remembered a gold statue Alana had kept on the windowsill behind her desk. If I could float it across the room then it would make the perfect weapon. Moving slightly I managed to glimpse the base of the statue. I concentrated tightly, imagining it slowly rising in the air and moving towards Aleric. Please don’t turn round. Careful to keep it moving slowly and silently through the air. Please don’t turn round. Please don’t turn round. My problem was I couldn’t quite see where his head was without moving forwards slightly and that meant risking exposing myself by leaning forward. I inched forward and got a better view of the statue but still couldn’t quite see where it was going, whether it would float over his head or smack right into him. The vague tremors of impatience moving of the leg beside me hadn’t really bothered me but dread seized my heart the second it stilled. _He knew._ Knowing I only had one chance I took a chance and thrust the statue forward, praying it would hit home. The thud of metal on flesh told me it had hit some part of the vessel but his body was too taut for me to relax. Surely he should have flopped down if it had hit his head?

“Nice try, Annabeth. Now why don’t you come out and face what’s coming to you.” The chair screeched back from the desk and his booted feet raised his body up. I curled back in the very darkest space of the desk and tried to think of plan C. I closed my eyes and pushed down the tsunami of panic trying to force its way into my brain and overwhelm me.

“Annie, Annie come out and play. Come out come out wherever you are.” He sneered, his voice dropping several octaves along with the temperature in the room. I was actually surprised when I exhaled and it didn’t cloud up in front of my face. “Anna _beth._ ”

I watched his feet stalk off, probably towards the door to make sure I couldn’t escape. There weren’t many hiding places in the room so he’d find me soon enough. Well, if I was going to go down then it would be fighting. Sliding out I crouched down low so Aleric couldn’t see me, I glimpsed the edge of an old fashioned letter opener (Spending so much time in exile on Earth had obviously given Alana a taste for human antiques). It would be a weapon of sorts at least, perhaps slow him down. Taking a deep breath I closed her eyes for a second as images of Caleb flickered through my mind. It was disheartening to think that he was the only person who would really miss me, but that also meant I was all Caleb had too. That gave me strength.

I leapt up, grabbing the blade and brandishing it as menacingly as I could. Aleric tried to throw me against the wall, his face contorted with concentration as I felt his power smash into me like a tsunami, threatening to drag me back but I held on. Aleric had trained me after all. I cleared my mind of everything and focused every ounce of my being on remaining rooted to the ground. My muscles began to spasm with the effort of remaining upright but I just turned my mind inward and focused every atom on remaining upright. I narrowed my eyes and managed to give Aleric a little smirk. It infuriated him enough that he suddenly stopped his efforts. The loss of a resisting force made me stagger but I quickly regained my footing as he pulled out his angel blade and flung himself towards me. I dodged, just missing the tip of the blade before rolling away from him and pulling myself up on the opposite side of the room. His eyes were glowing white with fury as he followed me across the room, his vessel moving with all the poise of a panther as he stalked me, pushing me further into the corner. I could feel my own eyes glowing, my back arching as my wings unfurled themselves, getting ready for the fight. I leapt forward, meeting him halfway for the room and the two of us scrabbled for a grip on the knife. I used every underhand trick I knew from sparring but he was a fully trained garrison angel and he managed to get through my defences and land a kick under my ribs. The breath was knocked out of me and I staggered to the floor.

“It was nice knowing you Annie.” He smirked as he placed one booted foot on my chest and began pushing down. I gasped desperately, scrabbling on his boot as black spots began dotting my vision, waiting for the inevitable snap. My chest burnt with lack of oxygen as my lungs tried desperately to get some remnant of air. My mortal side was taking over. Desperate for oxygen. If we were both honest neither of us knew quite what would kill me, so little was known about nephillim, we were half mortal but our grace held out strong. Nevertheless a broken neck would definitely slow me down, even if it didn’t give me a quick death. The letter opener must have fallen from my grip during the fight but with my fading vision I spotted it lying a few inches from my body. My arm shook and for a second I thought I would pass out before I could gain any purchase on it. As the world began to dim at the edges I used my last remaining strength to grab the paper knife and thrust it into his leg. It was surprise, rather than pain that made him loosen his grip on my neck. I desperately gasped in oxygen, my lungs contracting painfully, they obviously hadn’t thought they’d see any again. Throwing myself upwards I knocked him off balance. Aleric stumbled backwards as I leapt up, diving for the angel blade that hung in his hand. We scrabbled desperately, a blur of hands and feet and teeth all grabbling for purchase. Somewhere along the way we ended up sprawled on Alana’s desk, Aleric sprawled underneath me as he reached up with his free hand to try and strangle me again. I flung myself to the side, rolling off the desk while still keeping my grasp on the angel blade. My momentum momentarily gave me the advantage and I managed to wrench the blade from Aleric. The shock of my victory still coated his face as I plunged the blade deep into his chest.

Light erupted from his corpse as his grace withered and died under my hand, his wings burning into oblivion across the desk. I staggered back, staring in horror at the slack body. I’d killed him. I’d killed Aleric. Taking a tentative step forward I reached out and touched his cooling corpse but he lay immobile beneath me. I whispered an apology, tears flowing freely as I pulled the blade free and raced for the door. I still had to escape.

Taking the stairs two at a time I flung myself down the staircase, listening desperately for any signs of pursuit. I seemed to have caught a break as the only noise was my labouring footfalls. Reaching the second floor I dived through the doorway onto the girls’ dormitory. Wrenching my bedroom door open I finally caught a break as Caleb sat bolt upright on my bed. I knew he would be waiting diligent for me.

“Ann..” He started, his eyes moving desperately as they tried to take in everything from the bruise forming on my neck to the bloodied blade in my hand.

“We don’t have any time. We need to go. We need to leave here forever.” I grabbed his hand and tried to pull him out the room but he remained rooted to the spot.

“What the hell Anna! I’m not going anywhere until you explain everything!” I ground my teeth in frustration. He was going to get us both killed.

“Who do you trust more, me or them?”

“You, always.”

“The come with me,” I practically begged.

“I always knew you’d be the death of me,” He whispered, a fake smile plastered on his face as he readjusted his grip on my hands and pulled me towards the door. Before we could open it a scream sounded throughout the abbey.

“ALERIC! ANNABETH KILLED ALERIC!” Alana’s screams echoed off the walls and doors began banging down the corridor. We were trapped.  It was a testimony to the declaration of trust Caleb had just made to me that he didn’t flinch for a second at the revelation I was a murderer. Instead he raced to the window and yanked it open. We both took a second to stare down at the sheer drop to the gardens below.

“We’ll die,” I whispered.

“Do you trust me?” He asked, already swinging his legs up onto the windowsill. I didn’t dignify the stupid question with an answer. Instead I pulled myself up beside him.

“Here goes nothing.”

 

 

 


	4. The Impossible Girl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I refuse to believe he’s really dead :’(

 

**“There is no point in using the word 'impossible' to describe something that has clearly happened.” ― Douglas Adams.**

**Kevin Tran**

I blinked, open my eyes, once again grasping for breath only to be pulled into a bone crushing embrace. I gasped and tried to pull my hands free but I was held tight. After wriggling enough my captor loosened his grip enough that I could move back and stare into haunted green eyes. Dean. However, before I had a chance to say anything he pulled me back into a bone crushing embrace.

“I’m alive,” I murmured, more to myself than Dean. My muddled brain was working a mile a minute trying to catch up with what had been happening but images flickered through my eyes: lying in the bunker with the strange dark haired girl, _Anna,_ kissing her, that blinding light so similar to the first blinding light, Sam coming towards me… _Sam killing me._

“Yeah, yeah you’re safe, Kevin. Cas saved you, brought you back. I’m so so sorry.” I pushed back from Dean so I could look him in the eye. He looked, broken, whatever had happened to Sam, it had to be horrific. 

“What happened? What was that thing, because it sure as hell wasn’t Sam,” I gasped out, finally wriggling free of Dean’s grasp. I caught sight of Castiel hovering behind him, his suit covered in blood. I wondered what had happened while I was out. It just exacerbated my fear for Sam. Dean seemed unable to form the words, he just sat anxiously fiddling with a loose strand of his over shirt, while Cas cocked his head to the side and looked curiously at Dean. He obviously had no more clue than I did. Yet another Winchester secret. “Dean,I just DIED! What happened?!”

“It’s not Sam,” he whispered, his voice sounding hoarse and he kept his eyes downcast. Staring intently at the floor. It must be bad, Dean had admitted some crap to me before but he’d always managed to look me in the eye when he told me. “Guys I really screwed up this time.”

“Start from the beginning, Dean. We need to know everything if we are to help your brother,” Cas moved forward and placed a hand on Dean’s shoulder, finally making him look up. Tears glistened in his eyes but I knew he wouldn’t let them fall, he was still Dean frigging Winchester after all. Seeming to realise he was the only one capable of taking charge right now Cas grasped both of our collars and half pulled half dragged us to our feet before escorting us over to the library table. I felt unimaginably grateful when my butt connected with my usual wooden seat. Shakily I wrapped my arms around my body, trying to push back the sudden memory of Anna’s arms around me. The sense memory triggered yet more questions: Who was she? Where was she? Would I meet her soon? Would I meet her at all? Would…

No. One problem at a time. The latest Winchester debacle was a much more pressing issue. So I closed my eyes, took several deep breaths and shoved every prickly thought into a box in the corner of my mind to open at a later date. So, ready for Dean’s latest saga I waited with baited breath. And waited. And…

“Dean?” Cas eventually asked once it became obvious that Dean wasn’t capable of speaking. I risked a glance across the table at Dean and really wished I hadn’t, because, for the first time since I’d ‘woken up’ I really looked at him. He looked, well, done. That’s all my Princeton bound brain could think of to sum up those too bright, red rimmed green eyes, the day old reddish stubble and the permanent frown lines that looked ironed onto his brow.

“Sam was dying,” He began and I heard Cas exhale a breath beside me. There went any hope that Dean had been ignorant of the whole thing. Fat chance, he knew Sam better than anyone. “Those trials damn near killed him. And I called for you Cas, but you couldn’t come, and… I was running out of time. Sam was running out of time. So… I put a call out to all the angels-“

“You did _what?!”_ Cas snarled, staring at Dean in pure disbelief. “How could you be…”

“Cas!” I held my hand up, stemming whatever tirade was brewing. I wanted to yell too but I had a feeling if I let the angel start he wouldn’t stop. “Keep going Dean.”

“Ezekiel answered the call and said he could help Sam but only from the insi…” Something smashed to my left, but I refused to turn round, Cas would have to contain it until Dean finished his story. Then we could all go mad. Dean seemed to agree as he ignored Cas and focused on the table as he continued. “So I helped him to get Sam to say yes.”

“You did what?! After Lucifer, after everything he went through you _tricked_ …. He trusted you! More than anyone, he trusted you!” Cas screamed but I couldn’t stop him, I just kept staring at Dean. I knew the Winchesters could lie and deceive, hey I was almost one hundred percent sure they would lie to me to keep me towing the family line but to each other? I hadn’t been around for the whole apocalypse debacle but I knew enough from drunken discussions and… well, there weren’t really words to describe what Sam had gone through. All I knew was the idea of losing control of his body again was his worst nightmare. And Dean had done it to him.

“It was that or he died! What would you have done?” That question got me. Would I really have let Sam die? Maybe, maybe if I’d been in a rational frame of mind and known he would have preferred it to the alternative. But Dean was never in a rationale frame of mind when it came to his brother.

“But it wasn’t Ezekiel was it?” Cas snarled, he didn’t seem to be in the mood to give Dean any leeway in this.

“No,” Dean whispered, rubbing his hands across his eyes. “No, it wasn’t. I don’t know who it was. Suddenly he just killed… Kevin I’m sorry. I should have told you. If Cas hadn’t been able to save you, I would never have forgiven myself.”

“Lucky he did then. Anyway heaven wasn’t so bad. If only I knew who… Cas,  my heaven wasn’t normal,” I blurted out, unable to keep it in any longer.

 “It’s made up of your old memories. That’s why they don’t respond any differently to how you remember. You’ll get used to it,” Cas paused, his face slightly screwed up as though he was working through something in his head. “That sounded insensitive. I do not wish you to die anytime soon.”

“Yeah, I got it Cas. But my heaven wasn’t like that. I was in the bunker with this girl and she acted like I guess they do in heaven. I mean, she was having a conversation and I assume I should have known what she was saying but I didn’t. She was declaring her love for me and kissing me but I haven’t got a clue who she was.” I waited until I’d finished my babbling monologue before facing Cas, only to find him staring at me as though I’d grown an extra foot. Good sign.  

“You sure you don’t know her?” Cas asked.

“Oh yeah that’s it. Dean and Sam hired a striper for my last birthday but I was too drunk to remember till now.” I barked at the angel.

“Good, I’m glad that’s sorted,” Under normal circumstances Dean would have been rolling his eyes at me, maybe throwing in one of his own one lines but instead he sat staring forlornly at the seat Sam would usually occupy, he was probably only half listening to us, which left me to sigh alone in exasperation and explain I was being sarcastic and I had never met the girl in my life although in my last second in heaven I’d recalled her name was Anna.

“That is impossible. Heaven is created by the soul, it’s made up of all the good memories that resonate in you. You can’t have a heaven with memories you haven’t made. That’s impossible,” Cas looked unnerved, his usual calm façade cracking slightly as I called into question the very fabric of his home. Leave it to me to have the impossible heaven.

“Then how…?” I began but Cas just continued to look nervous so I stopped talking and tried to push all thought of Anna, my impossible girl, from my mind.

“Maybe it’s a prophet thing. Chuck could see the future, maybe Kev can see it too. He just doesn’t know it yet,” Dean suddenly offered, his voice shocked me; I honestly hadn’t thought he’d been listening but his scenario could be plausible.

“If things were different I would go to heaven and ask for advice but…”

“But you’re locked out. And saving Sam is our priority right now so my heaven can wait,” I knew it was the best thing, Sam was in danger and hopefully I wasn’t dying again anytime soon, so why worry about my heaven. Nevertheless there was a small part of my heart wanted to pull apart every tablet until I understood why I was different and whether or not Anna existed. Speaking of said tablet, maybe that could help us save Sam (and find Anna, but that wasn’t my prime goal, well, that was what I told myself anyway). However, on bringing up said angel tablet Dean blanched even whiter and mumbled something about my backpack. Anger irrationally bubbled up inside me and I had to resist the urge to pour more crap on Dean and his craptastic decision making skills. I didn’t even quite understand why I was so angry. Those tablets had ruined my entire life. My Mother was dead, I was hunted by angels and demons alike and my only friends in life were 2 hunters and a fallen angel. I used to have to spend hours poring over tablets that barely made any sense and frankly I used to beg daily for their destruction. But they had been the constants in my life. I knew what I had to do with them, I understood them in a way that no one else could and that idea was actually pretty comforting when everything else around me had disappeared into nothingness. And now pretend Sam had them and was doing God knows what with them.

The vague chance that they could have explained heaven to me also tugged at my soul. It was stupid but I just couldn’t let go of my heaven. But seeing as I’d just died and come back to life, maybe that was acceptable. I decided to treat Anna the way I treated the tablets; as a puzzle I needed to understand. It could take a while and it could hurt but I always managed to solve it eventually. I’d solve her too.

“There’s no point finding this angel without having a way to kill it without killing your brother,” Cas, ever the pragmatist, began.

“Is that even possible?” I mused, not remembering a single vessel that had fared too well in any fight I’d witnessed.

“Maybe if we could get to Sam without the angel knowing then we could get him to cast the angel out. There’s only one problem: Crowley’s the only one here who knows how.” And that’s how we made yet another deal with the devil. That’s how we lost Gadreel and the tablets but saved Sam. And that’s how Cas and I ended up on a bridge in the middle of the night in the middle of another Winchester blow out.

“Let me hear it,” Dean asked, seemingly resigned to whatever Sam unleashed on him.  

“What do you want me to say? I’m pissed. Alright, I am pissed. You lied to me.  Again.” As Sam began Cas and I moved slightly further down the bridge. Cas, now he had his grace back, seemed oblivious to the bone chilling wind and rain while I futilely wrapped my coat closer around my body.

“I didn’t have a choice.”

“Dean, I was ready to die.”

“I know. But I wouldn’t let you. It’s not in me.”

“Alright so you tricked me into being possessed by some psycho angel,” Cas and I shared an anxious side long glance. This wasn’t going to end well.

“It saved you.”

“So what. I was ready to die. And what about Kevin? I killed Kevin!”

“I’m alive, Sam. It wasn’t on you.” I shouted out, even though I was trying to give them space I didn’t want Sam to go down that blame spiral.  

“By luck, Kevin!” Sam barked back.

“Yeah, we got him back by luck. But his death is on me and I’ll burn for that. And I swear I’ll find Gadreel and I will end that son of a bitch. Alone.”

“What does that mean?”

“I’m poison. People get closed to me and they get killed. Or worse. I tell myself I help more people than I hurt. That I’m doing it all for the right reason. But I won’t drag anyone through the muck with me, not anymore.” Oh God I didn’t like where this was going.  

“Go. I’m not going to stop you,” Despite his vehement protest one look at Dean’s face told me that secretly he was desperate for Sam to tell him that everything was ok between them, that he wasn’t going to let his brother go anywhere alone. Sam wasn’t in a forgiving move though.  “But don’t think that’s a problem because it’s not.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Just go,” Same snarled with an air of finality. As I watched Dean’s retreating back, I had a terrible feeling that this would be the last time I saw him for a long time.  

 

 

 


	5. Hitch Hiker

**4\. Hitch Hiker**

**Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers- Tennessee Williams.**

**Anna**

I’d never flown before. We knew the angels could fly between heaven and earth in less than a second with no effort but we’d never been allowed to try. Certainly our half mortal status meant we probably couldn’t get into heaven without dying (and even then the Bible seemed to suggest we were such abominations hell would be more likely). A few times Caleb and I had tried to fly, not far, just fluttering to the ceiling. We could, but it took it out of us. We certainly couldn’t disappear to the other side of the world. However, as we took the swan dive down the side of the abbey, our wings flew out on instinct and rather than the bone crushing impact I’d been expecting, all I got was one scrapped knee.

Caleb, who’d managed to stay upright, didn’t miss a beat. He yanked our still connected hands and dragged me to my feet, sprinting towards the forest that lined the edge of the abbey grounds. While the trees concealed us from the windows, it was going to take them seconds to locate us. We needed to be hidden from them, and fast. I ran through everything I knew in my head, every trick we’d been taught. We were being readied to go into battle with angels after all and I remembered they’d taught us ways to conceal ourselves from view until the crucial moment. They’d obviously taught us thinking no one was strong enough to disobey.

“Do you have your blade?” I choked out between strides.

“Yes, but we can’t fight them all with one blade!”

“No, stop!” I yanked back on his hand, forcing him to stop. I yanked it from his belt and pulled his shirt up, ignoring his protests. “I need to carve on your skin, remember the sigil?” He nodded and, without further pleasantries, I stuck the blade into the skin along his rib line and tried to steady my hands and block out his hissing protests as I carved out the sigil from memory. I hoped it worked.

“Your turn,” I tried to ignore the seeming joy in his voice at causing me pain as stress at the situation. Lifting up my top and tried to focus on the surrounding woodland, checking that they hadn’t come in pursuit yet. The blades weren’t really the right shape for carving, more for stabbing, meaning it yanked, rather than sliced, the skin. I bit down on my tongue, water blurring my vision as I tried desperately not to scream out in pain as my skin was pulled in two. Thankfully the sigil was simple and, barely a minute later, we were sprinting towards the brick wall that marked the end of our home. Blood was sticking to my shirt, and the wound burnt with every movement.

“Fly?” Caleb asked.

“Why not break all the rules,” I grinned, not slowing down as we approached the walls, spreading my wings and kicking off. Without the aid of gravity it was harder, and I had to grab the edge of the wall and haul myself up the last few feet before falling over the edge, Caleb not far behind. Not daring to take a break we pushed on, racing desperately through the trees, waiting for the knife in our back with every step. Where were they? Were they still checking the abbey, and if so how long did we have to get out of here?

“We need to get near people. They can’t kill us in public. Head for the town?” Caleb asked, already sounding slightly breathless as we sprinted through the trees.

“No, we need to get away. There’s a road not far from here, I think. We can hitch out on one of their vehicles.” I yelled over the rushing wind as the green blurs of trees whistled past us. Finally my staring out of windows for hours on end had a use. Caleb squeezed my hand in acknowledgment and let me lead him in what I hoped was the right direction. Caleb’s palms were sweaty meaning I had to desperately cling to him to avoid losing our hold, well that was my excuse. Diving down hills, avoiding gnarled tree stumps as our legs flew along almost too fast, so every second I was scared we’d lose our tenuous grip on the situation and go flying.

It was almost a shock, then, when our feet landed on hard ground. We stared around, almost, bewildered as we found ourselves stood on an empty road. I tugged at his slack hand, pulling him away from what I thought was the way into town. Knowing that until we found a car we’d have to run and hope they didn’t catch us. We sprinted down the winding road, listening desperately for the sound of an engine that could put a bit more distance between us and our old family.

It started out as a low humming sound, as though we were being pursued by a bee. Spinning round I squinted, searching for an angel or two behind us. Instead a long black car was forming in the distance, our lucky break. Caleb began waving franticly while I went for the more subtle thumb in the direction we wanted to go. I’d read about it in some of the books in the library, and apparently this was the way to get what you wanted. Apparently the books got some things wrong though as the black car sped up and zoomed past us.

“Bastard!” Caleb screamed at the retreating vehicle while I grabbed his hand back and continued moving. We couldn’t afford to stop, I was surprised we weren’t dead already. He took the hint and picked up the pace again. I was surprised he hadn’t asked for an explanation although I was glad, I could barely get my head around whatever had happened. “Hear that?” I swivelled my head round, hearing another engine in the distance. We set up waving again, I even joined in with Caleb’s manic display. Thankfully, the blue truck slowed to a stop and we raced up to the open driver’s window. An older man in a blue baseball cap and who I guessed was his son peered down at us.

“You summoning a plane or you want a ride?”

“A ride, quickly, please,” I begged, trying not to seem too nervous. This was my first interaction with a human after all.

“You two on the wrong side of the law?” The elder man asked, eyeing the two of us up suspiciously.

“No, sir. Just need to get away from here,” I smiled, trying to look innocent. It must have worked as he nodded and pointed to his truck bed. We scrambled up the back, making a small bed between nets and poles. Unprepared for the truck’s sudden spurting start we both smashed into the cab, eliciting muffled laughter from inside. Caleb grabbed a wooden box and settled it beside the wall of the cab so we could both sit down side by side, watching for any signs of pursuit. Caleb grabbed my hand, despite the fact we’d run hand in hand, now it felt foreign.

“You killed Aleric?” He whispered in a tone so low human’s wouldn’t be able to hear.

“It was self-defence,” I whispered back, wishing I could forget his shattered body. Caleb squeezed my hand. 

“I know, just tell me what happened,” So staring down at our entwined hands, I told him everything I knew. As we talked his thumb began stroking my hand. I thought he was going for comforting but honestly I wasn’t sure how it made me feel. “So, what do we do now? Besides, you know, not dying.”

“We find Castiel and the Winchesters. Then we go back and take down this whole operation.”

“So nothing too strenuous?” He grinned at me and I laughed back. Needing a light hearted second.  “How?”

“Honestly? I don’t know,” I admitted, trying to think of a way to find an angel. I was sure there was a summoning spell but I couldn’t quite remember it. And I was loath to try it until we were away from the abbey.

“We’ll figure it out, Anna,” Caleb promised, squeezing my hand. I nodded, leaning back against the cold metal as I tried to wrack my brain for an idea. I had nothing. There was also something strange about the lack of volcanic like eruption coming after us. It was just too easy.   

“Hey! Kids!” The younger man yelled through the mesh hole separating us from the cob. “Where you want dropping?”

“How far can you take us?” I yelled above the roar of the engine.

“We can get you the next state over,” He offered and I shouted our thanks before settling back against Caleb. Hopefully the next state over would be far away.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

 “Good luck,” The elder man yelled as he dropped us at the edge of a city several hours later. We waved as the truck started up and drove into the inky blackness, soon to be swallowed from our sight.  Suddenly it all felt very real, we were stood on the edge of a human town, with angels on our tail and an uncertain future ahead of us. The only thing I had was Caleb. The aforementioned Caleb, however, was staring at me wide eyed, looking terrified. He had even less idea of what to do than I did.

“We could find some food?” I offered and Caleb grinned, even if it was a little something it would keep us going, and busy, for a bit. We wandered towards the lights, both of us staring dumbly up at the buildings. We were probably the only nephillum who could cope with the outside world; the abbey had a library full of books the old inhabitants had left which Caleb and I had made fast work of reading them all. As far as I know, no one else had ever even gone in there.

So we knew a little about human life. Enough to know we needed money for food. Money we didn’t have. I suggested we could try a run out. Caleb went with the more law abiding rummage through the bins in the alley round the back of an old dinner. Well, we were pretty sure we couldn’t get ill so it was worth a shot. Following him between the two buildings I kept watch as he leapt into the bin and rifled round, throwing black bags at me, which I assumed consumed some trace of food. Rolling my eyes I turned back to the street, listening for any approaching human or angel who would encroach on our so called meal. I was focused on the road ahead, I missed the tell tale rustle of wings.

“Hello Anna,” The hissed whisper tugged at the hairs on my neck and I whirled round to find Azaria, another of our fearless leaders, between Caleb and I. Blade in hand she lunged at me. I dived down, missing the blade by an inch. Rolling over I found her hovering over me, snarling down. Caleb had the knife… Caleb, who was suddenly very quiet. Oh God.

Rage fired me up. If she’d hurt him… I lunged forward, catching her off guard so we both went stumbling into the wall. She snarled, gnashing at me as I grabbed both her wrists. Knocking her against the wall in desperation, trying to dislodge the knife.

“You shouldn’t have brought him with you. He deserved better,” Azaria snarled, eyes glowing as we struggled. A well-aimed kick knocked to  my shin knocked me down, sending me crashing to the floor. Not missing a beat she raised the knife and dived at me. All I could do was close my eyes and wait for death.

Although it wasn’t my death.

Blinding light burned my irises, just as it had when Alaric died. What I guessed was Azaria’s body smashed into me, probably breaking a rib as I struggled to free myself. My saviour grunted as he pushed the body to the side and I dragged in a free breath as I finally got a view of who I hoped was Caleb. Sadly it wasn’t my Caleb. A human loomed above me. A dark haired man with bright green eyes held out his hand to me.   

“So why does an angel want you dead?”

                                                                  


End file.
